Ealdwulf (died 6 May 1002) was a medieval Abbot of Peterborough, Bishop of Worcester, and

Archbishop of York The archbishop of York is a senior bishop in the Church of England, second only to the archbishop of Canterbury. The archbishop is the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of York and the metropolitan bishop of the province of York, which covers th ...

Life

Traditional stories state that Ealdwulf was a layman and chancellor to King Edgar of England when one night he accidentally smothered his son while sharing a bed with the child. Rather than go to

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

to seek absolution for this sin, which had been his original plan, Ealdwulf refounded the monastery at

Medeshamstede Medeshamstede was the name of Peterborough in the Anglo-Saxon period. It was the site of a monastery founded around the middle of the 7th century, which was an important feature in the kingdom of Mercia from the outset. Little is known of its ...

, which later became known as

Peterborough Abbey Peterborough Cathedral, properly the Cathedral Church of St Peter, St Paul and St Andrew – also known as Saint Peter's Cathedral in the United Kingdom – is the seat of the Anglican Bishop of Peterborough, dedicated to Saint Peter, Saint Pau ...

, on the advice of

Æthelwold Æthelwold was a common Anglo Saxon name. It may refer to: Royalty and nobility *King Æthelwold of Deira, King of Deira, d. 655 *King Æthelwold of East Anglia, King of East Anglia, d. 664 *King Æthelwold Moll of Northumbria, King of Northumbria ...

, bishop of Winchester. Ealdwulf then joined his new foundation as a monkHunt "Ealdwulf" ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' before becoming

abbot Abbot is an ecclesiastical title given to the male head of a monastery in various Western religious traditions, including Christianity. The office may also be given as an honorary title to a clergyman who is not the head of a monastery. The ...

of Peterborough from about 966 to 992.Knowles, et al. ''Heads of Religious Houses'' p. 59Fletcher ''Bloodfeud'' p. 70 Ealdwulf was bishop of Worcester as well as archbishop of York from 995Fryde, et al. ''Handbook of British Chronology'' p. 224 to his death on 6 May 1002. While archbishop, he held a synod at Worcester around 1000 to consider moving the relics of Saint

Oswald of Worcester Oswald of Worcester (died 29 February 992) was Archbishop of York from 972 to his death in 992. He was of Danish ancestry, but brought up by his uncle, Oda, who sent him to France to the abbey of Fleury to become a monk. After a number of ye ...

.Barlow ''English Church 1000–1066'' p. 246 Ealdwulf's reputation was one of extreme piety.Brooke "York Minster" ''Churches and Churchmen'' p. 40

William of Malmesbury William of Malmesbury ( la, Willelmus Malmesbiriensis; ) was the foremost English historian of the 12th century. He has been ranked among the most talented English historians since Bede. Modern historian C. Warren Hollister described him as " ...

compared him to his successor Wulfstan as follows "Ealdwulf can be pardoned for holding the two sees contrary to canon law because of his sanctity, and because he did it not through ambition but by necessity."Quoted in Barlow ''English Church 1000–1066'' p. 25

Citations

References

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External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ealdwulf 1002 deaths Abbots of Peterborough Archbishops of York Bishops of Worcester 10th-century English archbishops Year of birth unknown